Boasting a plum location just a few minutes walk from Embankment and Charing Cross tube stations, plus in close proximity to Theatreland and Trafalgar Square, Tandoor Chop House is an intimate and casual restaurant which plants its flag firmly in comfort-food territory.
The work of Ennismore (the group behind the ever-expanding Hoxton Hotel brand), Tandoor Chop House strikes a casual tone with bare wooden tables, patterned tiled flooring and an open kitchen towards the back of the dining room, where the tandoor ovens are on full display. The menu here consists of a short selection of Anglo-Indian combinations designed for mass appeal, with plenty of quirky options to choose from, such as fried onion (bhaji) rings served with a smoked aubergine raita or a Nutella naan for pudding which is topped with coconut ice cream.
There is also a separate menu of Tandoor Tacos, a novel take on the famous Mexican snack which sees puffed-up naans crowned with various Latin-Indian toppings. We enjoyed a portion of these instead of a starter and opted for The Great Paneer, in which the pure indulgence of the deep-fried cheese was masterfully tempered by curls of sweet red onion and a tongue-tingling green herb and chilli chutney.
For the main event, we opted for the house tandoor chicken, boasting charring marks and striking the balance of smoky and juicy. If you’re in a group though, you might want to opt for the Instagram-baiting Mighty Tali, a huge silver tray adorned with an array of meats, dahls and chaats, plus plenty of naan to mop it all up with.
The menu is decent value for this part of town, but true heat-seekers might find themselves wanting more at Tandoor Chop House, where heat and spices are somewhat restrained, seemingly so as not to intrude on the restaurant’s mass appeal. Nonetheless, Tandoor Chop House does hit the spot when it comes to the kind of elevated comfort food that you can often find yourself craving after a long day at work, while the crowd of young professionals, couples on dates and families means this really is a restaurant for all. A fun list of cocktails, plus sweet and friendly service, add to the appeal too.